You may have noticed some activity going on at the Methodist Church lately, so here is what is happening in a nutshell.
As one of the oldest established churches in the region, First Methodist is nearly 170 years old. San Saba Methodist Epicopal Church South was organized in 1856 and met in various locations until they were given the land by Dr. James Rogan to build the first church building completed in 1882. Still recovering from the Civil War and hard times on the frontier, money was by no means plentiful. The plain white clapboard building with a bell tower was built with mostly donated services and materials. This building served the church until the current native marble building we have now was constructed. Ground was broken on Christmas Eve 1913.
By March 1914, the foundation began to take shape, and the cornerstone was laid. Deposited in the Cornerstone were a Christian Advocate, a Bible, a copy of the “News” and the “Star,” photos of Rev. Draper and Rev. Black, a photo of the old church, and a roll containing the names of members.
In 1917 the congregation moved into the basement of the present church where they worshiped until the Sanctuary was completed in 1921. The original cost of the building was $38,000.00 but today, still standing strong and sturdy, the building is priceless. The church thrived through the years bringing the word of God to many throughout San Saba County. The church still stands as originally designed with a few renovations over the years to freshen and update the spaces. The church took pride in maintaining its facility and installed its first pipe organ in 1946. In 1951, the basement was completely remodeled, the nursery was finished, new flooring was installed, central gas heating was installed, the Sanctuary was repainted and stained, the exterior was painted, the stained glass windows repaired and painted, and in general the whole church property was put in excellent condition. A public address system was installed in 1952, and the grand piano was donated in 1954. In 1956, air conditioning was installed. The parsonage is nearly as old as the church and was originally built in 1923 for $3,500.00 and has been improved over the years as well.
The last major building improvement campaign was completed in 1979 and included work on the Fellowship Hall, Rest Rooms, Sanctuary, Front Entry, Pastor's Study, Secretary’s office, Outside Building, Roof, and painting the parsonage. Once again, the church property was put in tip top shape.
Well friends, as the years rolled on, necessary minor repairs have been made, but the time has come again for some major work. You might say our church is going back to our roots both spiritually and physically, where we put God’s Word first and ABOVE ALL CHRIST FIRST. The current Trustees have started a Restoration and Renovation plan to get the Church once again in tip top shape. The good news is the structure is still fairly sound with mainly repairs to the weatherproofing systems required, as well as cleaning, painting and refinishing walls and windows.
You may have noticed some roof work going on lately as our gutter system is being replaced. The system is an integral part of the Architecture and thus needs craftsmen familiar with the historic churches and courthouses of central Texas. This is our first major undertaking.
We have been blessed to receive some funding, but to repair and update everything that needs to be done to both the Church and Parsonage, we will need much more. As with most renovations, as you move along you discover problems that have been hidden over time. Our original thinking was to repair, paint and seal up the exterior, then move on to the basement, worshipping in there while we tackle the sanctuary and classrooms. But as we all know, God sets the priorities and has let us know what needs doing when. We have recently found out the electrical service in the Parsonage and Old Scout Hut is not up to code, so for safety reasons that is happening soon!
Then during our gutter repair, God blessed us with 4-5” of rain in a matter of hours, overwhelming our already leaky windows and north wall and flooding the basement as well as substantial water damage in the Sanctuary. Of course our roofing company will help with these repairs, but it has made us realize our plan is not always God’s plan and He is putting in line what needs to happen first and He will supply what we need to get it done.
Spiritually, our church is stronger than it has been in a long time as we have gotten back to our roots and focus on Christ. We are excited, and have a new energy to take care of our house of worship. With that said, we know many of you in San Saba and the surrounding areas have deep ties to our church. So if you would like to help us restore this grand church and keep it going for another 100+ years, we would love your support in prayers and gifts as you are able.
We have set up a Restoration and Renovation Fund to help us finish this project. If you have any questions about our plans or would like to help in any way, you can reach out to our Board of Trustees Chair, Jacqueline Carlson, at 361-331-8618 or our Pastor, Judy Swarts, at 512-871-8106. We also invite you to come worship with us any Sunday at 10:00 a.m.
From time to time, I will continue to submit updates in the San Saba News & Star with our progress. Wouldn't it be exciting to complete this in time for our 170th Anniversary! Thank you for reading this message, and again, we appreciate your prayers and support. At First Methodist Church of San Saba, our motto is and we believe that ABOVE ALL, CHRIST FIRST!